The Carlos Alcaraz phenomenon in men’s tennis is real, and even former ATP pro Prakash Amritraj didn’t hesitate to admit the same. The Spaniard remains one of the biggest draws in the sport, with audiences filling large stadiums to watch the seven-time Major champion play. Amritraj highlighted that he has witnessed this influence firsthand, especially now that Alcaraz is sidelined due to injury.

“I have spoken with tournament directors, and whether he is injured or withdraws from a tournament, loses early, or reaches the final, he is such a decisive factor for the actual ticket sales of the event,” said Amritraj on the Nothing Major Podcast. “I mean, this guy is so big.”

The ATP Tour is currently missing the Alcaraz magic dust at its events as the Spaniard has been out since April after sustaining a wrist injury. The Spaniard’s absence might be viewed as an opportunity by other players to move deep in Slam draws, but the former World No.1 not being there has caused a shift within the tennis audience in general.

Alcaraz missed the French Open and Wimbledon this year, which may not have had a direct impact on ticket sales, as stadiums were full; it did affect the viewership numbers for the events, especially at SW19. The average viewership across broadcasters like the BBC and ESPN met the basic threshold, with ESPN averaging more than 850,000 viewers, but individual viewership for specific rounds was down from last year, especially during the latter stages of the Slam. Viewership numbers for the men’s semifinal and final were down 10 percent and 16 percent, respectively, much of which can be attributed to Alcaraz’s absence.

People missed the electric atmosphere Alcaraz brings to the court, and his great rivalry with Jannik Sinner was a major miss for organizers during this period, as the two have been dominating the sport since 2024, which also diminished audience interest.

Star players are essential for raising ticket sales and getting people in through the gates, as the recent withdrawals at the Canadian Open have shown. With Alcaraz, Sinner, and Djokovic not playing at the Masters 1000 event in Montreal, there is a real fear among organizers of getting more people in, with the tournament director speaking about making the tennis calendar more streamlined so that the top players can come and play the high-profile events and give the fans what they want.

Amid all the noise around his withdrawals, it is expected that Alcaraz will make his comeback in Cincinnati, as the Spaniard will look to get his form and match fitness back on track before he heads to New York for his title defense.

Carlos Alcaraz Needs a Strong US Season to be at the Top of the ATP Rankings

Alcaraz not being there at the French Open and at Wimbledon opened up one half of the men’s draw, something which Alexander Zverev took great advantage of. The German player won the French Open and reached his maiden Wimbledon final, which was enough for him to get a 300-point lead over Alcaraz on the ATP Rankings, displacing the Spaniard from the No.2 position.

Now, Alcaraz is almost 3420 points ahead of the fourth-placed Felix-Auger Aliassime. Still, the Spaniard does have almost 3000 points to defend from his title defenses at Cincinnati and at the US Open. If he has early-round exits at those or one of those events, and Auger-Aliassime has a deep run at his home event in Canada, Alcaraz’s gap to the rest of the pack will reduce significantly.

However, the more pressing concern for Alcaraz fans would be the form he brings back. Wrist injuries are tricky ones to recover from, especially in a sport like tennis, and the Spaniard will already have his work cut out against top-quality opposition. Even so, the Spaniard’s comeback is eagerly awaited by fans and pundits, with even Jannik Sinner calling for a quick comeback from his rival after the Italian had won Wimbledon.